Dark Souls II PC: Dead-ja Vu All Over Again… PREPARE TO BUY!

Posted on April 24, 2014 by geelw

Well, SOME of you are already downloading or playing this as we speak (wait, we’re back on speaking terms? Okay, fine!), but to the rest of you holdouts with decent gaming rigs to run this who are on the fence, you need a kick in the pants (well, a light one, as I don’t want to get on your bad side again). Just BUY it and prepare for a super tough but rewarding game experience. A bit to a great deal challenging for new players, but a total corker if you love games that test you and don’t even bother to hold your hand as you explore at will.

Dark Souls II doesn’t tell you much other than “here you are, find out what to do on your own” and to some, it will be the ultimate in “PAY ATTENTION!” game experiences because once you take your eyes and ears off the ball, something is going to come out the darkness swinging something heavy and dull or heavy and sharp and your poor avatar gets knocked off, down or into something that kills it. Oops. You’ll learn to appreciate dying here whether or not you play the game with other live players dropping in to invade your game.

This Humble Weekly Sale Is Packed Full Of Indie Hits (And Yes, You Can Hit Back!)

Posted on April 24, 2014 by geelw

Decisions, decisions with this week’s Humble Weekly Sale featuring games picked out be the folks at TSG TV! Do you pay what you want for five classic indie games, jump up to six bucks or more for an additional six games or try your luck and pay ten or more for an even baker’s dozen? Did I mention you also get soundtracks for a bunch of these games too? Even better, if you decide to empty your wallet and go for a $40 or $100 purchase, you get some really sweet swag sent your way.

Oh, I can’t help you here at all, folks… other than to say a percentage of what you pay goes to charity (this time, it’s Direct Relief) and you’ll get some really great games here to dive into.

WIN FREE STUFF! Grab The Conquest Bundle Gratis, Thanks To Bundle Stars!

Posted on April 23, 2014 by geelw

Hey, have you got an active Steam account and a decent gaming PC? Good for you! Want a code for a completely FREE bundle of a dozen games valued at $115? Um-hmmmm… I knew you would. Anyway, I have TWO codes here for the latest deal from Bundle Stars:

and all you need to do is reply to this post and the first two score BIG! Of course, you WILL check to see if your machine can run all these games first, right? Click on the banner above to go zipping to the site if you need to. And, no… you can’t have BOTH Steam keys, you – that would be unfair to the other winner.

Anyway, I’d imagine Steam keys work anywhere in the world you can get Valve’s game download service, so I’d say this giveaway is open to one and all. So, clear out some hard drive space or be prepared to fill UP a hard drive with a ton of gaming goodness without spending a cent. Yes, it’s because I just love giving stuff away, folks (really, I do!), so take advantage of my (and Bundle Stars’) generosity while you still can.

Dragon Age: Inquisition Gameplay Trailer: October Will Be A Nice Month To Take Off, I’d Say…

Posted on April 22, 2014 by geelw

Well, now. BioWare and EA want you to know that you probably should take October off. Well, not ALL of October nor ALL of you reading this post, mind you. However, if you own a decent gaming PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 Xbox 360 or Xbox One and happen to also be a fan of epic-length role-playing games… yeah, start making plans, people. Dragon Age Inquisition rolls out in North America on October 7 and in Europe on October 10, meaning you have a week during the beginning of the month to get your things in order and prepare yourself for whatever script you’re going to run on your boss to get out of that job for as long as possible (while still collecting a paycheck, of course). Or you could just move whatever vacation time to October in order to spend that time (and a lot less money) buried in all that wonderful hard work on your system of choice.

Naturally, there will be standard and collector’s editions of this one and of course, the inescapable pre-order bonuses and DLC that add to the experience (and help beef up the games sales figures early on for some guaranteed big numbers). I still prefer walking into a game shop to buy physical product, so I wish there were a way to get that DLC, as I happen to have a crappy online connection and other than the Wii U (which has a screen on its GamePad), no home console is built to lug around to a wi-fi hotspot to get games, game content and updates, which is too bad. Of course, this game isn’t appearing on Nintendo’s beleaguered console at all, which is also too bad. Anyway, if this gameplay trailer is any indication, DA:I will be a pretty spectacular experience (to put it mildly!)…

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Update: New Screens, Beta Gets a Big Boost!

Posted on April 18, 2014 by geelw

Nice. Neocore Games has released four new screens from The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II and added some new areas to the closed beta (which is automatically updating via Steam as I type). Excellent.

I was wondering what that other game was Steam was adding content to as I knew The Wolf Among Us was going to drop in Chapter Three as soon as I logged on. Of course, by the time I got to the email from Neocore announcing the beta update, it was about 70% done and I realized that’s what was up. Yeah, I think sideways from time to time, what of it? Anyway, May 22, 2014 is the new release date for VHII. Remember, you can pre-order the game directly from the developer or through Steam. I’ll have an updated hands-on shortly (most likely after the weekend)…

Wolfenstein “Nowhere To Run” Trailer: But If You Tried Walking, You’re Very Much Dead!

Posted on April 8, 2014 by geelw

Although I’m quite bored with the FPS genre, I’m keeping an eye on these Wolfenstein: The New Order updates because the story is pretty intriguing and Machine Games seems to have made series hero B.J. Blazkowicz into more of a character with an actual personality instead of just a one man army and part time bullet sponge, tossed him into a world that’s actually an interesting place (well, an interesting place full of Nazis in an alternate future where they WON World War II) and has you trying to put a stop to the menace using (what else) extreme prejudice. So Blazkowicz isn’t going to be getting the Nobel Peace Prize at all, but he will be taking out a LOT of trash by feeding it a lead and other ordinance diet until he’s whittled things down to the more manageable size of zero (or something close to it depending on whether or not this one’s got a sequel idea brewing).

Okay, the one man army thing is still in effect, but at least it’s well done so far. Wolfenstein: The New Order, will be available on May 20, 2014 (and in Europe on May 23) on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. Pre-ordering gets you into the upcoming DOOM beta test, so slap down a deposit on this one and prepare to see another classic shooter get the reboot treatment…

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing 2 Gets Knockbacked Into May…

Posted on April 3, 2014 by geelw

Game delays are nothing new, so this isn’t really a big surprise. Still, you have to love the press release Neocore Games sent out to announce the delay:

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Delayed due to Monster Invasion

Slightly delayed, but no need to worry – all that extra time will be spent polishing the game. The new release date is set to May 22, 2014.

So, what happened to the April release date of The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II? Well, we could blame the supernatural or the bad Vrikolak meat in the fridge, but the truth is, we want to release a superb game as polished as possible on release and that will take a little longer than we thought. We want to make sure the sequel is superior to the first game in every aspect and it keeps you nailed to your chairs all the way to the end with its engaging new story. Now the new date will also mark the anniversary of the first game’s release. So be ready to hunt down the new swarm of monstrosities when the game hits Steam on May 22, 2014.

All of you are reaping souls right now anyway, aren’t you?

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II is available for pre-order on PC. To pre-purchase the game, head to neocoregames.com/store and choose from the various supporter packages in various price ranges.

Me, I’m currently NOT reaping souls because Blizzard has ignored PS3 and Xbox 360 owners of Diablo III, but I have other stuff to keep me occupied while I wait for the man with the hat and Lady Katarina to make their second appearance in a more polished form. That, and I can also replay the beta a few more times just to see how all those other character classes do against the hordes.

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II Beta Hands-On: It’s The Reckoning For That Hunter…

Posted on March 31, 2014 by geelw

Thanks to the fine folks at Neocore Games, I had the opportunity to take a beta version of The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II for a spin and am happy to report it’s looking like a bigger, badder, meaner and harder game than the first one, especially if you’re hopping into it with your saved hero from the original. I hadn’t played the first game save for some hours with the demo, but Neocore also sent me a code for the Complete Pack, which got a marathon playthrough over the past week or so (and me a nicely maxed out Level 30 Hunter by that cliffhanger ending).

The new game starts off with a rather massive siege on a factory by many enemies being airdropped in capsules and a large army of civilian soldiers assisting Van Helsing and Katarina, his ghostly (and snarky) AI companion. Granted, one could play the beta using a few default high level characters in a few classes, but after trying out a few of these overpowered guys, I decided to take the longer, tougher (yet highly enjoyable and rewarding) route and go through the first game just to have a more personalized experience… Continue reading →

Dark Souls II TV Spots: Oh, The Places You’ll Go (Just To Die Over and Over)…

Posted on March 30, 2014 by geelw

Heh. I get a phone call during The Walking Dead finale from a friend asking me “So, what’s this Dark Souls II all about?” right after this ad airs. Whee! Of course, I had to tell him to ring me back in an hour or so or just wait for a quick email. He’s not a gamer at all, so I’ll give Namco Bandai props for getting an ad out that gets people not into the hobby all hot and bothered. Amusingly enough, I actually don’t have a copy of the game yet – it’s in my backlog of stuff to grab for the PS3 once I make a bit more money. I’ve played a bit of it already thanks to walking another friend through the first two or so hours of the game as he grabbed it on launch day and was having a hard time because yep, it was his first time playing something that difficult. Anyway, I got to play and he got to keep the character I made, so that’s a fine trade off, I’d say. Naturally, he got the poor guy I created killed a few times since, but my tech support ends when I leave the premises. Otherwise, I charge a flat fee (and it’s not cheap), heh…

Wolfenstein The New Order: Meanwhile, On A Train To Berlin… Heißen Kaffee und neue Freunde…

Posted on March 27, 2014 by geelw

Well, now. So much for a peaceful train ride through a rather unique version of post WWII Germany, hmmmmm? This in-engine scene from Machine Games’ upcoming Wolfenstein: The New Order made me want a cup of strong coffee, but not the headache that comes later on from caffeine withdrawal. It doesn’t quite feel like a big mech stomping on my head, but I’d rather have a headache from one over the other. If I’m not mistaken, Tommy Tordsson Björk (see below!) wrote the dialog in this scene. That Frau Engel is a real witch (with a capital “B”) isn’t she? Granted, I’m all for strong female characters in games, folks… it’s the Nazi part that kind of bends my straw a bit. But hey, the best villains are the ones you love to hate, so she’s added to the my list of characters to keep an eye on.

Remember, Wolfenstein: The New Order, will be available on May 20, 2014 (and in Europe on May 23) on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. As an added bonus, pre-ordering the game gets you invited to access the DOOM beta